To link to the entire object, paste this link in email, IM or documentTo embed the entire object, paste this HTML in websiteTo link to this page, paste this link in email, IM or documentTo embed this page, paste this HTML in website

JingLi Brings a synthesis of Chinese & American
Values to Saint Mary's History Department
BY LAUREN MATUKAITIS
staff writer
What do the ancient philosopher
Confucius and SMC’s new profes­sor,
Jing Li, have in common? Yes,
they’re both Chinese, but besides that
obvious similarity lies the fact that
they were both bom in the small town
of Qufii in China’s Shangdong prov­ince.
However, Confucius chose to
ponder philosophy, Professor Li, his­tory.
Professor Li’s main interest within
his field is Sino-American relations,
the main reason he came to the United
States. Having earned his Bachelor’s
and Master’s degrees in history from
China’s Jilin University, Li then came
to the U.S. to acquire a PhD at Rice
University in Texas.
Li worked for three years as an
assistant researcher at the Institute of
Modem History, Chinese Academy
of Social Sciences, for one year with
the National Program for Traing
School Teachers, and during his last
year at Rice, he served as a Chinese
History instructor. He understood
Sino-American relations from a Chi­nese
view, but not as clearly from an
American perspective. In order to gain
a more complete insight, and to better
compare the two cultures, Li decided
to earn his doctorate at Rice.
Presently in the process of com­pleting
this degree, Professor Li has
begun his first year of teaching, here
at SMC. Excited about his future with
the College, he is encouraged by the
fact that it is growing in so many
directions. The campus renovations
(walkways, new science building,
etc.) and changes in administrative
structure provide “a good feeling for
someone new,” said Li, who added
that he was pleased to leam that de­spite
the fact that the school is so
small, others on the faculty share his
interest in Chinese culture and his­tory.
Professor Li appreciates SMC’s
modest size in other ways. Rice Uni­versity
is also a relatively small school
(enrol'; mt 4000), and in this sense,
Li said that the transition from there to
here was fairly easy. He enjoys the
compact community and the poten­tial
for close“exchanges between pro­fessor
and student.”
Li finds this sort ofinteractionpara­mount
to teaching. Withinhis courses:
Legacy I, History of China I and inde­pendent
study with directed reading
focusing on Mao Tse-tung and the
Revolution, the professor hopes to
leam about his students and get to
know them. Understanding his stu­dents
and what they’re thinking helps
him to “hit the right spot” with his
teaching. So far, this has not been a
problem, and he hopes it will con-
Where's Reggie? Did he quit?
BY JEREMY RUSNOCK
staff writer
So, you signed up for a philosophy
class with Reggie Savage, and on the
first day of class, he was no where to
be found.
Where could he have gone? Was
he ill? Did he quit? Did he get fired?
His name was still on the schedule!
What’s up?
If you were here last year, you
probably know all there is to know
about Reggie Savage’s accusations
and Ted Lewis’ defenses. If you
weren’t, too bad, I’m not going into it,
ask a Senior. All we’re interested in
is: Where is he now? and Why didn’t
he come back?
People have speculated about this
for the past few weeks, with little to
go on, but I have it all, straight from
Reggie Savage. I make no claims to
either side, I just report what I see and
hear. This article may appear a bit
one sided, and it is, because I really
didn’t want to become a medium for
mud slinging between the two. This
is Reggie’s story. If anyone would
like to refute anything printed in this
article they may do so via a letter to
the editor or may contact the news
office so that an appointment may be
set up for an opposing view article in
the next issue of “The Point News.”
To begin, Reggie wants to apolo­gize
to any of the students who had
classes scheduled with him that were
canceled. Although, he says, if the
school had given him the leave of
absence as he had asked last spring
and found a replacement, the sched­ule
would have reflected that, and
problems could have been avoided.
But he was turned down twice.
As for the where, Reg is in
Blacksburg, Virginia, at Virginia Poly­technic
and State University during
the week, but comes home on week­ends
to be with his family. You may
still see him around campus from
time to time. His office is still in
Caroline 205. When I asked Reggie
the big question, Why did he leave?
(We all know basically why, but why
exactly?), he responded in two parts.
First, he said that his doctor advised
him to get out of the stressful situation
as St. Mary’s. He had begun to show
signs of chronic stress disorder such
as fatigue, high blood pressure, and
short term memory loss. Reggie was
told, if he didn’t alleviate the stress, it
would kill him. He says he is doing
much better, now that the pressure is
off. Second, he weighed the fight,
and realized it wasn’t worth it. He
didn’t want to disrupt the campus
again, though, he reaffirmed his be­lief
that “Ted Lewis should not be the
president of a public college.” When
I asked Reggie how long he planned
to stay at Virginia he replied “I will
not return to St. Mary’s until it no
longer has a white supremacist as its
president.” He also feels that there
are certain members of the St. Mary’s
faculty who, aligned with Ted Lewis,
would stop at nothing to get even.
Reggie’s wife, Nancy Paige Smith,
professor of Political Science, has
claimed that she has been harassed
constantly, and that the harassment
is due to the defense of her husband.
As for Reggie’s status, he is in
limbo. The school has no category
which fits his situation. Reg said that
he had applied for a leave of absence,
tinue to “happened naturally.”
According to Li, forcing connec­tions
in Sino-American relations “is
not the answer.” He understands that
modem Chinese culture is quite dif­ferent
from that of modem America’s,
but doesn’t want a comparison to end
just noting differences. Li commented
that more people should “go beyond”
this mindset, question ourselves, and
“in the final analysis . . .[discover]
fundamental human issues and val­ues.”
Li cites the example that Chinese
society is conservative, resistant to
change and stresses stability above
progress. On the other hand, Ameri­cans
constantly push, looking ahead.
While he appreciated American cre­ativity
and individual innovation, Li
conversely admires Chinese stress on
cooperation and social organization.
He says that the fast-paced American
lifestyle leads us to lose sight of our
values, and by observing the tradi­tional
society of China, we can gain
perspective. Meanwhile, the Chinese
can leam from Americans also, be­coming
more open to experimenta­tion
and individualism.
but was denied. He considered sick
leave, but the stipulations regarding
sick leave are not clear as to whether
a faculty member may qualify for sick
leave is he is able to work elsewhere.
He won’t quit, because that would be
admitting defeat. And, Reg believes
that the school won’t fire him because
that would be a blatant act of retalia­tion
on the part of the college which
Reg claims President Lewis threat­ened
to do..
Reg ended our conversation by say­ing
that he will deeply miss the stu­dents
at St. Mary’s, and that he doesn’t
think he will be able to form the same
kinds of close relationships with stu­dents
at Virginia or any other school
because of the personal atmosphere
St. Mary’s offers that many other
schools do not. He attributes his
abilities as a teacher to his former
students, and says that is was at St.
Mary’s that he learned a deeper re­spect
for students that he would carry
with him wherever he went. He hopes
that some day he will be able to re­turn,
but that is unlikely.
Anyone who wishes to contact
Reggie Savage may call him at Vir­ginia
Polytechnic and State Univer­sity,
Dept. ofPhilosophy, Blacksburg,
Virginia, 703/231-3492 or on week­ends
at his home in St. Mary’s City,
862-3615.
On a final note, Reggie wanted me
to make one final plea, on his behalf,
to the faculty member who suppos­edly
heard Ted Lewis’ racist com­ments.
Come out, come out, whoever
you are.
St Mary's Ranked First
BY CHRIS HEUN
staff xvriter
U.S. News and World Report
ranked St. Mary’s College first
among regional liberal arts colleges
in the north in the magazine’s sixth
annual “America’s Best College’s”
survey. *
St. Mary’s was also repeated as
the number one “Best Buy” in its
regional category. Two weeks ago,
Money magazine ranked the Col­lege
24th in the nation in its 1993
Guide to Best College Buys.
U.S. News rankings are based
upon statistical data and a survey of
academic reputations. The 1,373
four-year colleges and universities
included in the study were evalu­ated
according to a system that com­bined
statistical data with the re­sults
of an exclusive survey of aca­demic
reputations among 2,527
respondinf college presidents,
deans and admissions directors.
The College placed third in “aca­demic
reputation,” irst in “student
selectivity,” and second in “Fac­ulty
resources.” In the other two
statistical categories, the College
showed significant increases from
last year, moving from 34th to 18th
in finances and 3 8h to 30th in gradu-ation
rate.
Never fear, new dean is here
BY MARC SHAFFER
staff writer
New Dean of Students
Charlene Hunter Cole is now on
campus. Since her arrival over the
summer she has been spending her
time meeting faculty and learning
about the College.
“Mean Dean” Cole has been
faced with several immediate per­sonnel
issues. Dr. David Romano,
Associate Dean
for Health and
Counseling Ser­vices
and
M a r y A n n e
Maselli, Assis­tant
Director for
Residence Life
have both left St.
M a r y ’ s.
Searches are be­ing
conducted to
fill both vacan­cies.
Involving
the faculty in the
co-curricularlife
is considered a
priority by Cole.
She wishes to encourage the fac­ulty
to seek outside contact with
the students.
When asked about her organi­zational
style Cole explained that
“Within the Division of Student
Affairs, the respective offices have,
in many ways, operated autono­mously,
there hasn’t been allot of
cooperation and teamwork in
awhile.” Her intention is to change
this trend.
“I’m not going to say that we are
all the way there yet. I do have my
work cut out for me in getting them
to cooperate and collaborate on
projects.”
“I’m going to come to every
[SGA] meeting.[if she can find a
baby-sitter]” Cole has definite ideas
about the shape that student gov­ernment
should
take. “Program­ming
[fund allo­cation]
should not
be politicized.”
She is an advocate
for some sort of
realignment ofthe
way that the SGA
distributes its
funds..
Cole has ex­pressed
interest in
the plan for a stu­dent
on campus
nightclub. Al­though
she has ex­pressed
enthusi­asm
for the idea she is not commit­ted
to the present plan which would
place the club on the first floor of
Dorchester Hall.
Her philosophy of success at
St. Mary’s College: “I will only be
successful, at my job, if students
feel that they have some influence
over how I do my Job.”

JingLi Brings a synthesis of Chinese & American
Values to Saint Mary's History Department
BY LAUREN MATUKAITIS
staff writer
What do the ancient philosopher
Confucius and SMC’s new profes­sor,
Jing Li, have in common? Yes,
they’re both Chinese, but besides that
obvious similarity lies the fact that
they were both bom in the small town
of Qufii in China’s Shangdong prov­ince.
However, Confucius chose to
ponder philosophy, Professor Li, his­tory.
Professor Li’s main interest within
his field is Sino-American relations,
the main reason he came to the United
States. Having earned his Bachelor’s
and Master’s degrees in history from
China’s Jilin University, Li then came
to the U.S. to acquire a PhD at Rice
University in Texas.
Li worked for three years as an
assistant researcher at the Institute of
Modem History, Chinese Academy
of Social Sciences, for one year with
the National Program for Traing
School Teachers, and during his last
year at Rice, he served as a Chinese
History instructor. He understood
Sino-American relations from a Chi­nese
view, but not as clearly from an
American perspective. In order to gain
a more complete insight, and to better
compare the two cultures, Li decided
to earn his doctorate at Rice.
Presently in the process of com­pleting
this degree, Professor Li has
begun his first year of teaching, here
at SMC. Excited about his future with
the College, he is encouraged by the
fact that it is growing in so many
directions. The campus renovations
(walkways, new science building,
etc.) and changes in administrative
structure provide “a good feeling for
someone new,” said Li, who added
that he was pleased to leam that de­spite
the fact that the school is so
small, others on the faculty share his
interest in Chinese culture and his­tory.
Professor Li appreciates SMC’s
modest size in other ways. Rice Uni­versity
is also a relatively small school
(enrol'; mt 4000), and in this sense,
Li said that the transition from there to
here was fairly easy. He enjoys the
compact community and the poten­tial
for close“exchanges between pro­fessor
and student.”
Li finds this sort ofinteractionpara­mount
to teaching. Withinhis courses:
Legacy I, History of China I and inde­pendent
study with directed reading
focusing on Mao Tse-tung and the
Revolution, the professor hopes to
leam about his students and get to
know them. Understanding his stu­dents
and what they’re thinking helps
him to “hit the right spot” with his
teaching. So far, this has not been a
problem, and he hopes it will con-
Where's Reggie? Did he quit?
BY JEREMY RUSNOCK
staff writer
So, you signed up for a philosophy
class with Reggie Savage, and on the
first day of class, he was no where to
be found.
Where could he have gone? Was
he ill? Did he quit? Did he get fired?
His name was still on the schedule!
What’s up?
If you were here last year, you
probably know all there is to know
about Reggie Savage’s accusations
and Ted Lewis’ defenses. If you
weren’t, too bad, I’m not going into it,
ask a Senior. All we’re interested in
is: Where is he now? and Why didn’t
he come back?
People have speculated about this
for the past few weeks, with little to
go on, but I have it all, straight from
Reggie Savage. I make no claims to
either side, I just report what I see and
hear. This article may appear a bit
one sided, and it is, because I really
didn’t want to become a medium for
mud slinging between the two. This
is Reggie’s story. If anyone would
like to refute anything printed in this
article they may do so via a letter to
the editor or may contact the news
office so that an appointment may be
set up for an opposing view article in
the next issue of “The Point News.”
To begin, Reggie wants to apolo­gize
to any of the students who had
classes scheduled with him that were
canceled. Although, he says, if the
school had given him the leave of
absence as he had asked last spring
and found a replacement, the sched­ule
would have reflected that, and
problems could have been avoided.
But he was turned down twice.
As for the where, Reg is in
Blacksburg, Virginia, at Virginia Poly­technic
and State University during
the week, but comes home on week­ends
to be with his family. You may
still see him around campus from
time to time. His office is still in
Caroline 205. When I asked Reggie
the big question, Why did he leave?
(We all know basically why, but why
exactly?), he responded in two parts.
First, he said that his doctor advised
him to get out of the stressful situation
as St. Mary’s. He had begun to show
signs of chronic stress disorder such
as fatigue, high blood pressure, and
short term memory loss. Reggie was
told, if he didn’t alleviate the stress, it
would kill him. He says he is doing
much better, now that the pressure is
off. Second, he weighed the fight,
and realized it wasn’t worth it. He
didn’t want to disrupt the campus
again, though, he reaffirmed his be­lief
that “Ted Lewis should not be the
president of a public college.” When
I asked Reggie how long he planned
to stay at Virginia he replied “I will
not return to St. Mary’s until it no
longer has a white supremacist as its
president.” He also feels that there
are certain members of the St. Mary’s
faculty who, aligned with Ted Lewis,
would stop at nothing to get even.
Reggie’s wife, Nancy Paige Smith,
professor of Political Science, has
claimed that she has been harassed
constantly, and that the harassment
is due to the defense of her husband.
As for Reggie’s status, he is in
limbo. The school has no category
which fits his situation. Reg said that
he had applied for a leave of absence,
tinue to “happened naturally.”
According to Li, forcing connec­tions
in Sino-American relations “is
not the answer.” He understands that
modem Chinese culture is quite dif­ferent
from that of modem America’s,
but doesn’t want a comparison to end
just noting differences. Li commented
that more people should “go beyond”
this mindset, question ourselves, and
“in the final analysis . . .[discover]
fundamental human issues and val­ues.”
Li cites the example that Chinese
society is conservative, resistant to
change and stresses stability above
progress. On the other hand, Ameri­cans
constantly push, looking ahead.
While he appreciated American cre­ativity
and individual innovation, Li
conversely admires Chinese stress on
cooperation and social organization.
He says that the fast-paced American
lifestyle leads us to lose sight of our
values, and by observing the tradi­tional
society of China, we can gain
perspective. Meanwhile, the Chinese
can leam from Americans also, be­coming
more open to experimenta­tion
and individualism.
but was denied. He considered sick
leave, but the stipulations regarding
sick leave are not clear as to whether
a faculty member may qualify for sick
leave is he is able to work elsewhere.
He won’t quit, because that would be
admitting defeat. And, Reg believes
that the school won’t fire him because
that would be a blatant act of retalia­tion
on the part of the college which
Reg claims President Lewis threat­ened
to do..
Reg ended our conversation by say­ing
that he will deeply miss the stu­dents
at St. Mary’s, and that he doesn’t
think he will be able to form the same
kinds of close relationships with stu­dents
at Virginia or any other school
because of the personal atmosphere
St. Mary’s offers that many other
schools do not. He attributes his
abilities as a teacher to his former
students, and says that is was at St.
Mary’s that he learned a deeper re­spect
for students that he would carry
with him wherever he went. He hopes
that some day he will be able to re­turn,
but that is unlikely.
Anyone who wishes to contact
Reggie Savage may call him at Vir­ginia
Polytechnic and State Univer­sity,
Dept. ofPhilosophy, Blacksburg,
Virginia, 703/231-3492 or on week­ends
at his home in St. Mary’s City,
862-3615.
On a final note, Reggie wanted me
to make one final plea, on his behalf,
to the faculty member who suppos­edly
heard Ted Lewis’ racist com­ments.
Come out, come out, whoever
you are.
St Mary's Ranked First
BY CHRIS HEUN
staff xvriter
U.S. News and World Report
ranked St. Mary’s College first
among regional liberal arts colleges
in the north in the magazine’s sixth
annual “America’s Best College’s”
survey. *
St. Mary’s was also repeated as
the number one “Best Buy” in its
regional category. Two weeks ago,
Money magazine ranked the Col­lege
24th in the nation in its 1993
Guide to Best College Buys.
U.S. News rankings are based
upon statistical data and a survey of
academic reputations. The 1,373
four-year colleges and universities
included in the study were evalu­ated
according to a system that com­bined
statistical data with the re­sults
of an exclusive survey of aca­demic
reputations among 2,527
respondinf college presidents,
deans and admissions directors.
The College placed third in “aca­demic
reputation,” irst in “student
selectivity,” and second in “Fac­ulty
resources.” In the other two
statistical categories, the College
showed significant increases from
last year, moving from 34th to 18th
in finances and 3 8h to 30th in gradu-ation
rate.
Never fear, new dean is here
BY MARC SHAFFER
staff writer
New Dean of Students
Charlene Hunter Cole is now on
campus. Since her arrival over the
summer she has been spending her
time meeting faculty and learning
about the College.
“Mean Dean” Cole has been
faced with several immediate per­sonnel
issues. Dr. David Romano,
Associate Dean
for Health and
Counseling Ser­vices
and
M a r y A n n e
Maselli, Assis­tant
Director for
Residence Life
have both left St.
M a r y ’ s.
Searches are be­ing
conducted to
fill both vacan­cies.
Involving
the faculty in the
co-curricularlife
is considered a
priority by Cole.
She wishes to encourage the fac­ulty
to seek outside contact with
the students.
When asked about her organi­zational
style Cole explained that
“Within the Division of Student
Affairs, the respective offices have,
in many ways, operated autono­mously,
there hasn’t been allot of
cooperation and teamwork in
awhile.” Her intention is to change
this trend.
“I’m not going to say that we are
all the way there yet. I do have my
work cut out for me in getting them
to cooperate and collaborate on
projects.”
“I’m going to come to every
[SGA] meeting.[if she can find a
baby-sitter]” Cole has definite ideas
about the shape that student gov­ernment
should
take. “Program­ming
[fund allo­cation]
should not
be politicized.”
She is an advocate
for some sort of
realignment ofthe
way that the SGA
distributes its
funds..
Cole has ex­pressed
interest in
the plan for a stu­dent
on campus
nightclub. Al­though
she has ex­pressed
enthusi­asm
for the idea she is not commit­ted
to the present plan which would
place the club on the first floor of
Dorchester Hall.
Her philosophy of success at
St. Mary’s College: “I will only be
successful, at my job, if students
feel that they have some influence
over how I do my Job.”